Thursday, December 05, 2013

Look who's gleeful

The Detroit bankruptcy ruling handed down Tuesday is a turning point
in class relations in the United States. Approving the largest municipal
bankruptcy in American history, the federal judge in Detroit
essentially ruled that public employees do not have a right to pensions.According to Judge Steven Rhodes, any city or state can use federal
bankruptcy laws to strip workers of the benefits they earned during a
lifetime of labor, even if a state constitution such as Michigan’s
explicitly protects their pensions.This is a massive conspiracy against the working class with national
and international implications. It has been organized with the
participation and support of the Obama administration.The ramifications of the ruling are already being felt well beyond
Detroit. Within hours of the judge’s decision, both chambers of the
Illinois state legislature passed pension “reform” bills increasing the
retirement age, reducing cost-of-living increases and cutting other
benefits.Celebrating the decision, the Detroit News wrote Wednesday
that the judge’s ruling “overturns a 50-year belief in the sanctity of
public-sector pensions in Michigan.” The newspaper continued: “The call
is certain to reverberate nationwide among cities and school districts
grappling with ballooning pension liabilities” and investigating how
“obligations promised to public-sector retirees could be discharged in
federal bankruptcy.”The Wall Street Journal hailed the ruling in an editorial
headlined “Detroit’s Bankruptcy Breakthrough.” Summing up approvingly
the far-reaching legal implications of the ruling, the Journal
wrote: “Detroit is the first Chapter 9 case in which the supremacy of
federal bankruptcy law over state pension protections has been
decisively challenged and resolved.”

This isn't ending with Detroit. It would be appalling enough if it were 'just' Detroit. Detroit is one of our country's fabled city which has given so much to the country, with auto workers, as the original home of Motown and all the wonderful music that made the sixties. And now this great city has been forced into bankruptcy.

All as part of a neoliberal plan that they hope to implement elsewhere.

Thursday, December 5, 2013. Chaos and violence continue, Nouri's State
of Law tries (and fails) to spin for him, the conflict between Nouri and
cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr gets more attention, one
journalist sees the upcoming election as a race between Nouri and
Moqtada, Nelson Mandela has passed away, US President Barack Obama is
caught in another lie, and more.

In a tribute to Nelson Mandela, Tavis talks with activist-entertainer Harry Belafonte, Rep. Maxine Waters and talk show host Larry King,
all of whose paths crossed with this extraordinary man, and also shares
a personal memory of the then-ANC deputy president’s 1990 visit to Los
Angeles.

Nelson Mandela dedicated his life to
fighting for equality and helped transform the future of a nation. He
moved the world when he became the first Black president in a part of
the world engulfed by apartheid. From a 27-year incarceration for his activities in South Africa's
anti-apartheid movement to winning the Nobel Peace Prize, becoming
president of the Republic of South Africa, spending his retirement years
raising money to build schools and clinics in South Africa's rural
areas and sharing his life and struggles in several books, Mandela
proved that one man can make a difference. The world has lost a
courageous and inspiring human being.In a tribute to his life and legacy, we're joined by three people who
have very personal remembrances of meeting the great man. Harry
Belafonte—a
tireless advocate for justice and equality in his own right—was a
longtime friend and chaired the organization that introduced then-ANC
Deputy President Mandela to the U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters first met Nelson
Mandela in Los Angeles during his first visit to the United States.
And, venerable talk show host Larry King had the privilege of
interviewing President Mandela several times.

Next topic, are you an undocumented worker in the US? Better hope
you're related to the President of the United States. As his aunt and
uncle demonstrate, when you're related to him, even though you've been
ordered out of the country, you get to stay. Everybody else, the White
House insists, get out.

President Barack Obama
lived briefly with his Kenyan-born uncle while attending law school,
the White House said on Thursday, reversing earlier statements that
there was no record of the two men ever having met.White House spokesman Jay
Carney said he clarified the issue with the president directly after
reports that Onyango Obama, who faced deportation from the United
States, said he had housed his nephew temporarily.

I know about the drunk driving only through Cedric and Wally's previous
coverage. It's not an 'issue' I follow. But even I knew that the White
House stated the two had never met.

You can be sure Barack Obama also knew the White House stated it.

Or is this another moment of, "Nobody told me!"

For two years, Barack let a lie stand. For two years, he refused to correct the record.

And now he's only doing it because his uncle's remarks in court leaked out.

In November 2011, a White House spokesman said he had no record of
the two ever meeting. The Washington Post had also reported that
scholars believed the two had never met. The White House never moved to correct the record, until the
president’s famously private uncle took the witness stand in Boston
immigration court two days ago.

It's a lie.

That's not, "Impeach him! For lying!" But don't pretend that it didn't
happen. I'd actually be more forgiving if we were told the
clarification included a lie -- because this claim that he hadn't spoken
to the man in 10 years and hadn't been face-to-face with him in 20?

That's disgusting.

Barack groupie Bruce Springsteen has a song entitled "Highway Patrolman" (first appears on Nebraska):Yeah me and Frankie laughin' and drinkin'Nothin' feels better than blood on bloodTakin' turns dancin' with Maria as the bandPlayed "Night of the Johnstown Flood"I catch him when he's strayin' like any brother wouldMan turns his back on his family well he just ain't no good.

Barack had no blood relatives on the mainland (Hawaii's not the
mainland, love the state, have a home there, but it's not the mainland).
At that time or after. So to have an uncle in Boston when Barack's
living in Chicago and Barack has no contact with him?

That's disgusting.

Man turns his back on his family well he just ain't no good

Apparently 'Dreams of My Father' are safe because Daddy's dead but to
have your father's brother alive? You can use him when you're going to
college but you have no desire to make your own living blood relative on
the mainland part of your life? That's really sad.

Again, his latest lie? Not a crime, not an impeachable offense. It
does, however, go to pattern and it goes to character. There's a reason
he's polling so poorly and is considered untrustworthy.
Maybe Ann Dumham didn't teach him Aesop's fable about The Boy Who
Cried Wolf? Let's review it by way of a scene from season two of Kate & Allie,
the "Rear Window" episode written by Stu Hample -- Susan Saint James
played Kate, Jane Curtin played Allie and Fred Koehler played Chip.Allie: Have you ever heard the story of the little boy who cried wolf?Chip: Yeah, it's about a little boy who cried wolf.Allie: A shepherd. The little shepherd went into the field one day
and he got bored so he cried wolf. And all the villagers came running.Kate: Right and when they saw there was no wolf, they got mad and they went home.Allie: And the next week, he went into the field again, and he got bored again and he cried wolf againKate: And all the villagers came and when they saw there was no wolf there, they really got mad and went home again. Allie: But the next time there really was a wolf. And the little
boy cried wolf but nobody came. And the wolf ate the little boy.

In the wake of yesterday's NSA spying revelations, Barack wanted to
vouch for the NSA in an interview today, wanted people to believe him. Matthew Hoye (CNN) quotes Barack declaring, "I've said before and I will say it again, the N.S.A. actually does a
very good job about not engaging in domestic surveillance, not reading
people's emails, not- listening to their- the contents of their phone
calls. Outside of our borders, the N.S.A.'s more aggressive."

He wants to be believed.

After "If you like your plan, you can keep it." After misleading the
American public with a tale of never having met his uncle. After that
and so much more, he wants to be believed.

It's not that easy.The lies that you tell Will leave you aloneThey'll keep you downThey'll catch you up and trip you upKeep you hangin' around
-- "Love You By Heart," written by Carly Simon, Jacob Brackman and Libby Titus, first appears on Carly's Spy

The U.S. Condemns December 4th Terrorist Attack in Kirkuk

December 5, 2013

The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad strongly condemns the
December 4 terrorist attack in Kirkuk in which dozens of people were
killed or injured. The United States is committed in its support to the
Government of Iraq in combating terrorism. We extend our sincere
condolences to the families of the victims of the attack and hope for a
rapid recovery of the injured.

Security forces early Thursday ended an hours-long siege at a mall in
the northern city of Kirkuk but not before militants killed nine people,
security officials and medics said.The attack Wednesday on the mall
in the oil rich ethnic tinderbox city, which involved a car bomb and
would-be suicide bombers, came amid a surge in unrest that has claimed
more than 6,200 lives this year.

The visit comes amid increasing division within the governing Shi’ite
coalition in Iraq. It follows an announcement by the Sadrist Bloc in
Iraq’s parliament, led by Moqtada Al-Sadr, and the Islamic Supreme
Council of Iraq, led by Ammar Al-Hakim, of their intention to fight the
next parliamentary elections on separate lists and open the door to new
alliances in order to choose an alternative prime minister to Maliki.Meanwhile, the State of Law Coalition, which Maliki leads, insisted
on Maliki’s nomination for the premiership for a third term, a move
rejected by the Sadrists and the Supreme Council.

Jawad Al-Jubouri, a member of the Sadrist Al-Ahrar Bloc, told Asharq Al-Awsat:
“The visit may seem like a state visit by a senior official, such as a
prime minister, who is working on Iraqi international relations,
especially with neighboring states. However, the problem is in the
timing of the visit, because carrying out two visits in close succession
to two important countries, the United States and Iran, makes observers
suspicious.”There are reports that he was rebuffed. As Dar Addustour notes,
his sudden visit follows cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr's
announcement that Iranian authorities had decided they would not back
Nouri for a third term. Moqtada made those statements on the weekend.
On Monday, the media learned Nouri had decided to make a sudden trip to
Iran. He did not inform Parliament of the hastily cobbled together
visit.

While the last Iraqi general election in 2010 revolved around the
rivalry between the State of Law Coalition, led by Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki, and the Iraqiya List, led by Ayad Allawi, the upcoming
elections in April 2014 are more likely to be affected by the worsening
conflict between Maliki and Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr. The latter has recently emerged as a major critic of the prime minister’s policies, even calling Maliki a dictator and advising him to not seek a third term.

With the disintegration of the Iraqiya bloc and the likelihood that
the next election will be an intra-communal competition, Sadr and Maliki
will compete to win the largest number of Shiite votes, despite the
fact that they have different constituencies. Sadr’s support is
concentrated in the poor and densely populated Shiite areas, while
Maliki has succeeded in securing the support of a large segment of the
military, state workers and a considerable segment of the Shiite middle
class, in addition to the tribal support that he gained by co-opting
some tribal leaders in the south.However, this difference in support bases may be a reason for the
intensification of the conflict between them. Unlike the Supreme Islamic
Council, which is the third major Shiite force and which seems more
cautious in its confrontation with Maliki, Sadr’s largely fortified
constituency could secure enough votes to make him the kingmaker after
the election. Sadr’s explicit opposition of Maliki’s attempts to secure a
third term has made him a potential target in the premier’s survival
tactics. Among the first manifestations of the early electoral conflict between the two sides was a Nov. 2 statement by Sadr criticizing Maliki’s recent visit
to Washington as an attempt to win US support to remain at his post.
Maliki’s office responded on Nov. 4 in an unusually harsh statement that
accused Sadr’s militia of having been involved in the sectarian
killings in Iraq during the past years and of collaborating with external powers against the Iraqi government. The statement threatened a harsh reprisal in the future should Sadr not change his behavior.Later that month, Maliki ordered the arrest of a group belonging to Sadr’s Mahdi Army,
which held a military parade in Diyala. Maliki’s move looked like
another message that he would not be lenient with the Sadrists, but did
not lead to a confrontation between the two sides because Sadr himself
had denounced the group's actions and supported Maliki’s decision to arrest its members.The significant step in that confrontation came with the issuance of two arrest warrants
and one summons for three Sadrist parliament members on corruption
charges. It was noteworthy that the three lawmakers are fierce critics
of the Iraqi government and the prime minister’s policies.

Those dependent upon western media may be scratching their heads over the above events. Dropping back to the November 4th snapshot:

The Iraq Times reports
Nouri launched an unprecdented attack on Moqtada today declaring that
he's trying to destroy the country, that he knows ("very well knows")
who is carrying out the killings and sectarian warfare in Iraq. All Iraq News adds that Nouri accused Moqtada of joining foreign countries in plotting against Iraq. Alsumaria notes
that Sadr MP Hossein Sharifi responded that Nouri enjoys hurling
accusations at rivals to deflect from Nouri's own failures in
leadership.

Nouri al-Maliki: They
also
remember
the
honorable
Iraqis
who
firmly
and
strongly
confronted
the
terrorists
particularly
al -
Qaeda
and they
also
remember
the
control
of
Moqtada’s
militia
that
fostered
murder,
kidnapping
and
theft in
Basra,
Karbala,
Baghdad
and
other
provinces
.

In supporting Asaib al-Haq, Mr. Maliki has apparently made the risky
calculation that by backing some Shiite militias, even in secret, he can
maintain control over the country’s restive Shiite population and,
ultimately, retain power after the next national elections, which are
scheduled for next year. Militiamen and residents of Shiite areas say
members of Asaib al-Haq are given government badges and weapons and
allowed freedom of movement by the security forces.

That group he's backing? A rival of Moqtada al-Sadr's.

That's the attack Nouri launched, let's move over to the arrest warrants. From Monday's snapshot:Let's stay with political news out of Iraq. All Iraq News reports
today that arrest warrants have been issued against two members of
Moqtada al-Sadr's parliamentary bloc -- MP Jawad al-Shihaili and Baha
al-Araji. al-Araji is charged with "damaging general properties" and
al-Shihaili is charged with "stealing state's revenues." These warrants
come only after Wael Grace (Al Mada) reports
MPs are accusing Nouri al-Maliki of misuse of state resources on his
recent trip to Basra -- including, Moqtada's bloc pointed out, Nouri
offering up land plots. MPs see the visit as typical Nouri trying to
bribe for votes but the difference this time is that a law's been passed
to make this illegal.

A member of the Parliamentary Committee on Integrity, MP for the Ahrar
bloc Jawad al-Shayli accused the Dawa Party behind the arrest warrant
issued against him.He said, at a news conference in the House of
Representatives today that the judiciary issued an arrest warrant
against him and MP Jawad Hasnawi and a memorandum of bringing against
the head’sbloc Bahaa al-Araji , accusing the Dawa Party of being behind
it , with the aim of political targeting, comparing the work of the Dawa
Party, now with Baath Party.He added : "The warrant
relating to charges in accordance with Article 316 of embezzlement of
state funds , which means the money of the medical treatment, which he
took from the House of Representatives ."He said : "The MP, of
the State of law, Khalid al-Attiyah took four times this expense ,"
wondering : "Why did not issue an arrest warrant against Al-Attiyah, and
many MPs of state of law ," adding : "The aim of these warrants is
political targeting ."

Dar Addustour reported yesterday that a judiciary source states the call for the arrests came personally from Nouri.

State of Law MP Ali Shala is trying very hard to spin for Nouri. Sadly for Nouri, Shala doesn't know how to spin. Rudaw reports:

Shala insisted that rumors about Maliki’s pursuit of a third term and
securing Tehran’s support are baseless.
“These are all propaganda and only the ballot boxes can decide on the
next prime minister, not the neighboring countries,” he said. Iran, Iraq’s eastern neighbor, is a major power-broker in Iraq,
exercising great influence through Sadr and other Shiite parties it
supports. [. . .] the State of Law official said that the National Alliance, a
broad-based Shiite coalition comprising Sadrists, the Iraqi Supreme
Islamic Council and State of Law, would re-nominate Maliki for a third
tenure.

Rumors of a third term are baseless? But Shala says that Nouri's going to be nominated for a third term?

Okay, is the the third term attempt baseless or not?

At least there were no prominent defections from State of Law today, right?

State of Law is the coalition Nouri created. Today it's the coalition with a high profile defection. Iraq Times notes that
State of Law's leader in Parliament, Izzat al-Shahbandar, is the topic
of speculation with rumors flying that he had resigned from State of
Law. Alsumaria then reported that they could confirm the resignation via multiple sources. Hours later, All Iraq News noted
Izzat al-Shahbander had publicly announced his resignation and
declared, "The SLC [State of Law Coalition] turned into a sectarian
coalition." All Iraq News also noted that al-Shahbander met with cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr on Tuesday. Kitabat quotes
him stating that Nouri's positions and actions do not reflect his own
beliefs and he cites Nouri's refusal to work with political opponents or
to respect the ongoing sit-ins.This is a major blow to Nouri. It's a loss at a time when Nouri's
personal prestige was already on the decline. It's a loss that
al-Shahbander and Moqtada can spin as 'the building of a new Iraq.' The
two were at odds for some time. In fact, in 2011, the Sadr bloc was
accusing al-Shahbander (and other State of Law MPs -- but they
specifically named al-Shahbander) of procuring women for Nouri in the
Green Zone. Now that can be put behind them, is the message, and the
unity and good of Iraq can instead be embraced.

As political parties prepare for upcoming general
elections, some very important alliances are falling apart. Shiite
Muslim parties allied in the current governing coalition led by PM
Nouri-al-Maliki say they will campaign alone - and they won’t promise
al-Maliki another term. Amid a surge in sectarian violence, could the
country finally be entering a post-sectarian political era?

Prominent Shiite Muslim politicians in Baghdad have
confessed that there is one major reason why the previously strong
alliance of Shiite Muslim parties is breaking up. This alliance was what
allowed current Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to form his ruling
coalition, the State of Law bloc. But now, as political parties start
negotiating partnerships and jockeying for position ahead of the
upcoming general elections, scheduled for April 2014, the formerly
strong Shiite Muslim alliances have fallen apart.

A special meeting was held in Baghdad on Nov. 18 at which
all member parties of al-Maliki’s alliance were present. A statement was
issued afterwards declaring, “Shiite Muslim parties are enthusiastic
about competing in the coming elections together”. But this seems to
have been spin: The reality on the ground is very different.

“The State of Law bloc has asked that all other parties
that want to enter into an alliance with it agree ahead of elections
that if they win, the future Prime Minister will come from the Dawa
party and that that party will not nominate anyone other than Nouri
al-Maliki,” a senior politician, who did not want to be named, told
NIQASH. “This is why the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and the Sadrist
bloc are avoiding any such alliance.”

The strongest Shiite Muslim parties in Iraq are
al-Maliki’s Dawa party, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, or ISCI,
headed by cleric Ammar al-Hakim and the Sadrist bloc, headed by another cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
There are also other minor Shiite Muslim parties such as the National
Reform Trend headed by former Prime Minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, and
the Islamic Virtue Party, or Fadhila, headed by controversial
Najaf-based cleric, Mohammed Musa al-Yaqoubi.

Both the Sadrist bloc and the ISCI seem firm about their
intentions not to enter into an alliance with al-Maliki’s party again.
Both al-Hakim and al-Sadr have been critical of al-Maliki’s government,
with al-Sadr being very harsh, very publicly and al-Hakim tending to be
quietly critical.

In exclusive comments to Asharq Al-Awsat, Hasnawi said:
“There has been a political targeting of the Sadrist Movement and the
Al-Ahrar bloc, particularly given that we are approaching the elections.
The reason for this is to politically destroy opponents and harm their
reputations, especially as the Al-Ahrar bloc is more active than others
in raising corruption issues.”“These are part of vengeful attempts against us which have become obvious to all,” he added. Hasnawi accused Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki of being behind
the issuance of the arrest warrants. He said: “The arrest warrants are
dated and these cases have been closed for a long time. There is not a
single one which is related to a new case, but there are judges who work
as protectors for the prime minister who issue arrest warrants
according to Maliki’s demands.” “The arrest warrant against Baha Al-Araji is related to the Red
Crescent issue, which was closed in 2008, and the warrant against Jawad
Al-Shahili is related to the issue of MPs’ loans and he provided
parliament with receipts,” the Sadrist Movement MP added.

He also accused MPs belonging to Maliki’s own State of Law coalition of corruption. He told Asharq Al-Awsat:
“All these accusations are being made while there are still some State
of Law Coalition MPs, such as Khalid Al-Attiyah, who spent much more on
medical treatment and have not provided any official receipts.”